1. Technical Field
This invention relates generally to internal combustion engines, and more particularly to pistons and their method of construction.
2. Related Art
Engine manufacturers are encountering increasing demands to improve engine efficiencies and performance, including, but not limited to, improving fuel economy, improving fuel combustion, reducing oil consumption, increasing the exhaust temperature for subsequent use of the heat within the vehicle, increasing compression loads and temperature within the cylinder bores, decreasing weight and making engines more compact. In order to achieve these goals, the size and compression height of the piston need to be reduced, however, the increased temperature and compression loads within the combustion chamber require maintaining the piston within workable thermal and loading limits. As such, although desirable to increase the temperature and compression loads within the combustion chamber, there is a tradeoff in that these increases limit the degree to which the compression height, and thus, overall engine size, can be decreased. Further, the degree to which the weight of the engine can be reduced is compromised in that the increased temperature and load demands placed on the piston require that they be made of steel.
A piston constructed in accordance with this invention overcomes the aforementioned disadvantages of known piston constructions and other disadvantages, as will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading the disclosure and viewing the drawings herein.